US 8 was originally supposed to begin at US 41 in Powers MI. It was to be signed with US 2 west to Hermansville, then southwesterly through Faithorn, crossing the Menominee River near there into Wisconsin; it was to connect with its current route at or near Pembine WI:

c. 1927, Rand McNally

However, despite what that map showed, a direct road between Pembine and Hermansville has never been built. So when US 8 was first actually implemented, it appears to have been routed north from Pembine with US 141 to US 2 between Iron Mountain and Quinnesec MI. It is unclear whether it was co-signed east with US 2 to Powers -- or actually, whether it was even signed at all before 1929. At any rate, it was only a few years before the east end of US 8 was shifted to its current terminus at Norway. This photo was taken looking north on Brown Street, approaching 7th Avenue (US 2):

Camp, Sep. 2001 (unchanged as of June 2009)

​Here we are looking east on 7th at the east beginning of US 8...

Allen, 2002

Allen, June 2009

​...and here we are looking west on 7th approaching Brown:

Lindsay, 1965 (linked to source)

Allen, 2002

Allen, June 2009

If a traveler takes that left turn, they will soon see the first westbound marker:

Mortell, 1996

The original west end of US 8 was at US 61 in Wyoming. From Chisago City, US 8 followed what would later become MN hwy. 98 to Wyoming, and what is now Chisago County route 22:

c. 1927, Rand McNally

In town, this is apparently known as Rumohr Avenue or Wyoming Trail. The view in this photo was looking west on CR 22:

Castleman, Oct. 2005

That was the original west end of US 8. As of this writing, US 61 still serves Wyoming; it runs along what is locally called Superior Street, Forest Boulevard, and/or Chisago CR 30. A few years later, the west end of US 8 was extended to Minneapolis. Over the years it had a couple different termini there: from 1931-1978 US 8 ended at the intersection of 3rd and Washington (see the Minneapolis page). Then from 1978-1981 the terminus was truncated to the intersection of Broadway and New Brighton Boulevard. This photo was looking east on Broadway:

Castleman, May 2004

To the left, New Brighton heads off at a northeasterly angle -- the car turning that direction is at the former west beginning of US 8. It is unusual that the US 8 designation ended here, since Broadway was not designated as a highway. But there is an interchange with I-35W just to the left, and since New Brighton extends only another quarter-mile to this intersection, maybe the state figured they might as well just maintain the entire road...

...but that lasted only about three years, anyway: in 1981 the US 8 designation was truncated to its current location in Forest Lake. This photo was taken where US 8 merges with I-35 at partial-interchange 132:

Osbaldeston, Sep. 2002

Kasprzyk, summer 2016

The flyover in the distance is also visible in this photo, which was taken from northbound I-35 at the west beginning of US 8:

Castleman, summer 2002

Traffic on southbound I-35 does not have direct access to US 8. Rather, drivers are directed to exit at Broadway, head east, and then north:

Kasprzyk, summer 2016

Drivers exiting there will soon see the first eastbound marker:

Nitzman, Apr. 2007

​The signage in the distance is in reference to US 8's first junction, which is with US 61. Jeff Morrison's page has more photos and commentary regarding this terminus.